This animated poem teaches the five steps it takes to write a slam poem. The illustrations are both beautiful and inspiring. The words are a powerful testament to the poetic process. This is a lesson of transformation in poetry, by Ms. Gayle Danley.
All posts by Katie Rose
The Pleasure of Poetic Pattern
The pleasure of poetry comes from the pleasure of the rhythm of language. This is a lesson on repetition in language and the importance of balancing our own repetition with the rest of the world. Created by David Silverstein.
How Do You Think by Anonymous
If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don’t!
If you’d like to win, but you think you can’t,
It’s almost certain you won’t.
If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost;
For out in the world we find
Success begins with a fellow’s will;
It’s all in the state of mind!
If you think you’re outclassed, you are;
You’ve got to think high to rise.
You’ve got to be sure of yourself
Before you’ll ever win the prize.
Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man;
But sooner or later the man who wins
Is the person who thinks he can!
– Anonymous
Source: Inspirational Quotes and Poems
Kleine Madeline
When Giving Is All We Have by Alberto Ríos
One river gives
Its journey to the next.
We give because someone gave to us.
We give because nobody gave to us.
We give because giving has changed us.
We give because giving could have changed us.
We have been better for it,
We have been wounded by it—
Giving has many faces: It is loud and quiet,
Big, though small, diamond in wood-nails.
Its story is old, the plot worn and the pages too,
But we read this book, anyway, over and again:
Giving is, first and every time, hand to hand,
Mine to yours, yours to mine.
You gave me blue and I gave you yellow.
Together we are simple green. You gave me
What you did not have, and I gave you
What I had to give—together, we made
Something greater from the difference.
– Alberto Ríos
Source: Poets.org
The Social Revolution – Remember Me
“We are our greatest gift.” Imagine everything we have and will be able to achieve with a world of shared emotion. Tomorrow is in our hands. Together, we can make it a better place.
Introduction to Poetry by Billy Collins
I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide
or press an ear against its hive.
I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,
or walk inside the poem’s room
and feel the walls for a light switch.
I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author’s name on the shore.
But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.
They begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.
– Billy Collins
Source: PoemHunter.com
You Learn by Jorge Luis Borges
After a while you learn the subtle difference
Between holding a hand and chaining a soul,
And you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning
And company doesn’t mean security.
And you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts
And presents aren’t promises,
And you begin to accept your defeats
With your head up and your eyes open
With the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child,
And you learn to build all your roads on today
Because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans
And futures have a way of falling down in mid-flight.
After a while you learn…
That even sunshine burns if you get too much.
So you plant your garden and decorate your own soul,
Instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure…
That you really are strong
And you really do have worth…
And you learn and learn…
With every good-bye you learn.
– Jorge Luis Borges
Source: Hello Poetry
Faultless Love
There are no faults in our stars
Just faults in how we view each other
Because my love
The bad eye sight, wrinkles and smile lines
And even the receding hair line
Makes you imperfect to others looking in
But to me, perfection has a different meaning
Love is perfection
No matter how subtle or small, how big or strong
Love is you
For you are perfectly you
And there is no other way I want you to be
As long as you love me
– Katie Rose Waechter
I’m Taking my Ball and Going Home
A poem about acceptance. A poem about loneliness. A poem about belonging. Scott is what we all are.